TORONTO, June 5, 2014 /CNW/ - An ambitious fundraising campaign to revolutionize mental health care was announced to nearly 1,000 guests attending the 2014 Transforming Lives Awards at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) last night.

The $200 million Breakthrough Campaign – Canada's largest hospital fundraising campaign for mental health – was launched at a celebration of inspirational individuals living with mental illness. Unveiled on the future site of two state-of-the-art buildings that will support patient care, research and education, the Breakthrough Campaign – now at $106 million raised – aims to usher in a new era of innovation in mental health care and provide the resources to:

Help more people recover faster;

Inspire hope through discovery and;

Stop mental illness from destroying lives.

"The breakthroughs our families and communities deserve are truly within reach, and I am inspired every day by how much these breakthroughs will mean to them," says Darrell Louise Gregersen, President and CEO, CAMH Foundation.

The Honourable Michael Wilson, former Canadian ambassador to the U.S., is Honorary Chair of the Breakthrough Campaign. Business leaders Jamie Anderson, Tom Milroy and Michael McCain are campaign co-chairs.

The campaign aims to transform treatment, research and the prevention of mental illness, offering hope to millions of people in Canada and beyond. "My breakthrough is a CAMH that's building a future in which everyone believes that life is worth living. We're committed to transforming mental health care and creating hope – across the lifespan and around the world, says Dr. Catherine Zahn, President and CEO, CAMH.

About CAMH FoundationCAMH Foundation is the fundraising arm for Canada's leading hospital for mental health. The Foundation has been transformational in advancing CAMH's world-leading clinical care and education, as well as its acclaimed research through the Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Canada's premiere institute for brain science. The next phase of CAMH's ongoing renewal will blend innovative treatment centres and state-of-the-art research and teaching facilities with public green spaces, shops and residences integrated into the hospital's 27-acre site in downtown Toronto.

SOURCE: CAMH Foundation

For further information: or to arrange interviews, please contact Becky Fong, at becky.fong@camh.ca or 647-888-5573.